Colgate-Palmolive Co.: Excellent Company But How's the Valuation?

When volatility in the markets increases that leads many investors to look for defensive investments that will hold up during a market downturn. Consumer staples are some of the best options when it comes to holding up in a declining market as well as offering investors compelling growth and dividend growth opportunities. Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) is an excellent company with 52 consecutive years of raising their dividend; however, that doesn't mean that we should be willing to purchase quality companies at any valuation. Colgate-Palmolive was trading around $62 per share on Tuesday, September 22nd giving a current yield of 2.46%.

The following tables/graphs are taken from my personal stock analysis spreadsheet. Data for the stock analysis was sourced from Colgate-Palmolive Company's investor relations page, Morningstar, and Yahoo Finance.

Historic Growth Rates:

Over the last decade, owners of Colgate-Palmolive have delivered excellent returns. According to longrundata.com, CL has earned investors a total return of 206.3% or 11.8% annualized returns over the last 10 years. Those numbers are market returns at specific snapshots in time and aren't necessarily indicative of the business results over the same time period. Looking at the historic growth rates for per share dividends, earnings, revenue, and free cash flow gives a better idea of the true operational results that Colgate-Palmolive has delivered.

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